How to Store Pho: An Effective Guide

Pho is a traditional soup from Vietnam that a lot of people enjoy during breakfast or even lunch. The soup dish is made by combining noodles (Can be stored also), vegetables, herbs, and various types of meat, all in a beef broth.

Since a lot of people prepare pho in relatively large quantities that can last for multiple days, you might be wondering about storing pho leftovers, and that’s where this guide comes in handy!

In today’s article, we’ll show you how to store pho leftovers for another meal while retaining the quality of its ingredients. Let’s dive in!

A Brief Step by Step Guide to Store Pho

Now that you know more about ideal storage conditions and how you need to separate all the ingredients before storing pho, here’s a brief guide that shows you how to do it:

Step 1: Prepare Storage Containers

First, you’ll need to grab storage containers that are large enough to contain your components but not too large that there’s too much air inside. Ideally, you can do it with covered plastic cups.

Step 2: Store the Noodles

Open the cup where you’re going to store the noodles and start scooping them out with chopsticks or a fork. Noodles will usually rise to the top when the soup settles. 

Make sure that you let them drip as much broth as possible so prevent them from mushing up in the cup.

Step 3: Store the Broth

Using a strainer, pour the rest of the pho soup into a cup to separate the broth from the rest of the ingredients. 

Step 4: Store the Meat and Veggies

Now that you have your meat or veggies separated, you can easily put them in another plastic container and put all three containers in the refrigerator.

Step 5: Enjoy Them Later!

Once you want to eat your pho, preferably as soon as possible, you only need to put them all together and reheat them in the microwave.

How Long Is Pho Good For?

As previously mentioned, pho soup consists of a wide range of ingredients. So ideally, each of them will have a different lifespan depending on their texture and vulnerability to bacterial growth.

Outside the refrigerator, most of the ingredients of the pho soup won’t last any longer than a couple of hours to a maximum of 4 hours, depending on the storage conditions and the room temperature where you live.

However, when they’re mixed together, the entire soup is bound to the quickest ingredient to go bad. For that reason, the key to extending the life of pho soup is separating its components.

After separating the components, you should expect the noodles to last up to 2 or 3 days in the refrigerator while the broth can last there a bit longer (about 5 to 7 days). The meat usually lasts for 3 to 4 days when refrigerated.

Can You Freeze Pho?

Freezing pho will extend its life significantly and most of the ingredients will be good to eat for weeks or even months. 

However, as the frozen ingredients thaw, the noodles and veggies will become too soft and mushy, which makes them quite unappetizing.